On February 15th, an asteroid is expected to come less than 18,000 miles away from Earth. On a cosmic scale, that’s really close. But there is a high level of confidence in the orbital path of asteroid 2012 DA14. While it is possible that the asteroid will collide with a satellite in geosynchronous orbit (22,000 miles), scientists do not consider an impact with our planet likely.
Given that the asteroid was discovered in 2012, this is quite impressive. NASA scientists were able to make 249 observations of the asteroid to determine the impact risks. 2012 DA14 is also quite large, roughly half the size of an American football field. If you are so inclined, and weather permitting, you may be able to see the asteroid around the time of closest approach on the 15th.
Pasco Phronesis 